another eye opens

The next day we made an expedition to the steep Umbrian hilltown of Gubbio.

The original idea was to ride the funivia (tiny open-air two-person cages) to the top of the hill. Luckily for the acrophobics among us, it turned out to be a rainy day and the ride wasn’t running.

Instead we had lunch and visited a gay artist named Gabrielle in his studio/gallery on Via dei Consoli.

He makes sculpture, ceramics, and paintings (this is my favorite).

Then we climbed up to the Cathedral Gardens and checked out the Duomo, which the Lonely Planet Guide describes as “a plain beast with a fine 12th century stained-glass window, a fresco attributed to Bernardino Pinturicchio and not much else.” Vero.

The view from the gardens was impressive, as was Arnie’s profile.

The ride back to Terzo di Danciano included a stop at the supermercato for supplies. Happy Hour ensued. See how happy Jay looks.

Michelino sets a beautiful table.

Tonight it was Michael’s turn to dazzle us with his singing, in another stone room with excellent acoustics (see below).

After the first session of THAT’S AMORE, my couples retreat, we made an expedition to nearby Cortona, stopping along the way to visit Celle, the monastic community originally founded by St. Francis of Assisi.

This is the tiny cell where St. Francis lived, prayed, and slept overlooking the waterfall (“torrent”).

As you can see, the landscape is gorgeous.

And it continues to be a thriving community of monks.

Cortona is like a pocket-sized version of Siena. The day we visited, the central piazza buzzed with the annual crossbow competition.

Each of the five quarters of Cortona sends two teams (a shooter and an assistant) to the competition.

Afterwards, the winner (the young man at the right) leads a parade through town, while the lad at the center carries his trophy, a silver dagger, on a pillow.

The costumes and the faces were amazing.

My dudes were looking pretty sharp themselves — Chris, Terry Wayne, Jay, and John.

By chance, we’d arranged to meet the folks at Dal Brenna, who crafted the trophy for the crossbow competition.

The company has a tiny storefront on the street and also a cantina deep in the bowels of a former private home.

The friendly proprietors served us prosecco with gold dust sprinkled into it and showed us their ancient olive oil press (above), cheese cellar, and wine-stomping vat. The acoustics of the place were so amazing that Michelino took it upon himself to offer a song (see below).

I spent a week in Italy conducting a retreat for gay male couples at Terzo di Danciano, a rustic villa on the border of Tuscany and Umbria.

The friendly and handsome proprietor, Luca Francia, bought this former farmhouse and renovated it as a center for seminars and special events.

I arrived as another program was finishing up — this is the view from my room.

I stayed in the room sometimes occupied by Luca’s daughter, Pepita.

Her bathroom door is unique in the house — the front panel is a vision of heaven…

…the inside panel a vision of hell and/or San Gimignano.

I woke to this view of morning fog.

When it burned off, I was able to confirm that, yes, I had arrived in that pocket of paradise known as Tuscany.